Module ARAM225 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Postgraduate Module Descriptor
ARAM225: Gender and Politics in the Middle East
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
This module aims to enable you to analyse ‘the politics of gender’ across diverse contexts in the Middle East and North Africa. You will learn to analyse the relationship between gender and politics on multiple levels, from individual subjects, to communities and societies, to states and governance, to transnational trends and processes; the course will additionally equip you to identify how these levels are necessarily connected. The course aims to promote politically active learning through engagement with topical events and project-based assessment
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. Discern the various ways in which gender roles, relations and norms are constructed, reproduced and challenged in the Middle East. 2. Identify and critically assess the changing social, political, cultural and economic contexts that shape gender in the Middle East. 3. Evaluate critically different theoretical and methodological approaches employed in the study of gender and sexuality in the Middle East. |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 4. Analyse and assess academic texts and prevailing cultural notions critically. 5. Distinguish between a range of methodological approaches as well as variety of genres, i.e. anthropological and sociological texts, (auto)biographical writings and fiction. 6. Demonstrate an awareness of, and be sensitised to, the various processes by which gender (i.e. femaleness and maleness) is socially and culturally constructed in different contexts. |
| Personal and Key Skills | 7. Digest, select and organise material to produce, to a deadline, a coherent and cogent argument, developed through the mode of assessment. 8. Critically examine and review existing literature. 9. Engage in independent study and group work, including the presentation of material for group discussion. |
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class presentation (blog post) | 5 minute presentation of a blog post (1000 words), twice during the course | 1-6, 9 | Verbal feedback |
| Project proposal | 1000 words | 1-6, 8 | Written & verbal feedback |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 35 | 4,000 words | 1-8 | Written feedback |
| Weekly 'reaction papers' | 30 | 3 x 1000 words | 1-8 | Written feedback |
| Summative project (group or individual). Submissions may take the form of short reflective essays (for example a film or exhibition review); video or photo essays; podcasts; play scripts; short stories; poetry or spoken word; and/or original artwork with details of your creative process. This list is not exhaustive. Submission format and pathway will be agreed individually with the convenor after review of proposals (mid-term). | 35 | Written submission of 2000 words OR 15 minute in-class presentation. | 1-9 | Written feedback; verbal feedback if required |
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Essay (4000 words) | 1-8 | August/September reassessment period |
| Reaction papers | Brief weekly 'reaction papers' written as blog posts (3 x 1000 words) | 1-8 | August/September reassessment period |
| Project | Project materials, including reflective essay of 2000 words; in-class presentations are not possible. | 1-8 | August/September reassessment period |
Re-assessment notes
Where you have been referred/deferred for the project presentation, you will complete a short essay (2,000 words) that reflects on the process and outcomes of your project.
